Technical recruiter calls for agencies to protect clients from increasing risks of employing temps

The latest judgement of the Court of Appeal in the case of Cable & Wireless v Muscat has increased the risks to organisations employing temps through recruitment agencies. Following the decision, temporary workers can take on the status of ëimplied employeeí and can consequently claim for unfair dismissal against an agencyís client under the terms of the Employment Rights Act 1996.

ìItís all too easy for clients to assume that they have a degree of protection because they are employing the worker through a third party and they are often unaware of the potential pitfalls involved until they are faced with an expensive and time-consuming claim,î says Dave Leyshon, MD of the technical recruitment firm, CBS Butler. ìWe believe that recruitment agencies have a duty of care to clients to protect them from these risks.î

CBS Butlerís own risk management programme was instituted earlier this year after consultation with employment law specialists. All new clients are taken through a risk questionnaire in a face-to-face meeting as part of an audit of current practice and then the firm works with HR and line managers to establish clear guidelines as to how the organisation should deal with temporary workers. ìAlthough the scheme has only been in action for a few months,î says Dave Leyshon, ìwe have already saved clients several million pounds in risk exposure.î